1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to replacement seats for chairs for immobile or substantially immobile persons, and more specifically to an easily installable, readily detachable, integrally molded seat and backrest combination having a toilet opening. The replacement seat is adapted to retrofit existing chairs whose seats which are worn or otherwise unfit.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Generally speaking, there are a variety of chairs in use for assisting the elderly and infirm with their locomotion and sanitary needs. The most common type of chair is the ordinary wheelchair or collapsible wheelchair. Other types of chairs include sanitary chairs, commode chairs, and shower chairs.
A typical chair has an aluminum or plastic frame and a seat composed of either a flexible material, as on a wheelchair, or a rigid plastic. Many chairs also have a backrest composed of a rigid plastic material, or a flexible material such as nylon, separate from the seat. When used as a toilet chair, the seat will often contain a toilet opening. Some chairs are designed to be used without a toilet, and include a commode receptacle to collect the waste from the toilet opening.
Typical toilet chairs and replacement seats are exemplified by the following references:
Stoute, U.S. Pat. No. 4,296,506 teaches a flexible seat for a collapsible wheelchair. This replacement seat includes a toilet opening a removable receptacle designed to fit below the opening, and a flap to close the opening when it is not in use.
Allen, U.S. Pat. No. 4,837,868 discloses a toilet device including a chair frame with a toilet seat, and a commode receptacle mounted below the opening. The commode receptacle has an access port to provide for cleaning of the patient seated on the seat.
James, U.S. Pat. No. 4,177,528 is a sanitary chair with a toilet seat, and movable arm rests. These movable arm rests allow easy entry to the chair by a person in a wheelchair.
Love, U.S. Pat. No. 4,587,678 and Hynson, U.S. Pat. No. 4,428,615 disclose still other variations of toilet chairs.
These devices suffer from a variety of drawbacks. Most toilet chairs are very uncomfortable, having generally a very skimpy construction. Often, the chairs do not even have a backrest. This further discomforts the patient, who is already in an undignified situation.
Further, many seats and backrests are constructed of flexible material. As flexible materials provide little support, they are particularly awkward to sit on when used for toilets. Moreover, as flexible materials become wet, as toilet chairs often do, they become even more uncomfortable, and may harbor bacteria or disease. Finally, flexible materials, especially fabric such as canvas, are particularly difficult to clean and dry.
A further drawback of flexible seats is that they are difficult to replace. If a seat or backrest become worn, it may be necessary to cut the old material off before rep-acing it, and often, replacement flexible parts are not available. It would thus be necessary to discard a chair with worn parts if no replacements were available.
Even on chairs with available replacement parts, replacing these parts may be difficult, requiring special tools or techniques.
One object of the present invention is to provide a replacement seat for invalid chairs which is designed to retrofit existing chair frames.
Yet another object is to provide a seat as above which is sturdy, durable, easy to clean and dry, waterproof, and does not harbor disease.
A further object of the present invention is to provide such a seat which is easily installable and removable by an ordinary person with few tools, if any. The seats should also be stackable, so they may be stored in a smaller space for institutional applications.
A still further object of the invention is to provide a replacement seat which is comfortable to sit on. These and other objects and advantages will become more apparent from the following description and drawings.